Mountain Climbing

After a bit of a sleep-in this morning, we decided that we would visit another michelin 1 star for lunch - and today it was Le Saule Pleureur (Weeping Willow) located in the countryside less than 30 minutes' drive from our cottage.  

Fortunately, we didn't make a booking.  The restaurant is located in a street for which our GPS (Jane) doesn't have street numbers.  The restaurant is located in Monteux so we decided to go there and then simply drive down the street until we found the restaurant. What we didn't realise is that Monteux Sud and Monteux Nord seem to be located at opposite ends of France! Jane took us to the wrong end of Monteux of course and after a very long drive through villages and vegetable farms and stopping to ask for directions on 2 separate occasions, we finally decided that it was too difficult and that we would stop at the next restaurant we saw,  and there it was!  On the other side of the motorway in the middle of nowhere.

The restaurant is very elegant, set in lovely gardens, and the staff are great.  And the food - sensational.  Probably the best food we've had this trip.  Excellent produce, perfectly cooked and stunningly presented. We chose 2 courses from the little menu of Chef's Recommendations and wines by the glass - 2 different Chateauneuf du Papes - both great.

Starter:  Littlest bowl of cold pumpkin cream, with a tiny scoop of herb icecream, minutely diced vegetables of Provence topped with some micro herb.  That was when I first said "this is the best food we've had so far" - and it got better!

Entree:  Mushroom risotto - the risotto was al dente and pure white, creamy and delicious, surrounded by a fabulous jus with the mushrooms served on top.  There were several types including ceps and girolles - most cooked but some raw and thinly sliced - with some pistachios and finely chopped walnuts - topped with a wafer thin sliver of parmesan and a few micro herbs.  And that is when Brian said "this is the best dish we've had so far".

Main:  Entrecote of Black Angus with little bowls of perfectly cooked and presented vegetables of Provence - baby fennel, baby artichoke, pieces of carrot and zucchini - with a few more herbs.  This was the entrecote I've been searching for since 1975 - the first time I ever came to France and first time I ever had entrecote - at a little restaurant in St Emilion.  Anyway, the waiter brought our entrecote out soon after we ordered - raw on a board and topped with a few herbs and garlic to get our approval before it was cooked.  Of course it looked fabulous - a huge slab of beef on the bone.  Brian said "I assume we'll get a minute portion of that".  I soon enlightened him (the menu was in French so I just translated it for him and did the ordering) and told him how much it was costing us.  The look on his face was a sight to behold!  He said he might pop around to the other tables to see if he could on-sell part of it!  Anyway it was sensational.  We each had 4 slices of perfectly cooked beef, served with a jus that I will never forget - and the bone was served between us on a chopping board.  Just perfect!

And the bread was the best bread we've had in a restaurant so far - little bread rolls that were still warm - some with olives and some just white - just the right amount of elasticity and chewiness - and delicious. And the coffee was good too - served with 8 simple petits fours. What a lunch!  We absolutely loved it and had such a great time with the staff.  The restaurant is very polished but has such a relaxed and happy ambiance.

Then off to Mont Ventoux - the mountain we can see from our bedroom window - and a world heritage site!  It was a lovely drive through quite elegant villages below the mountain.  And then up, and up, and up and around and around and around, on and on for about 40 minutes we think.  We've both seen Mont Ventoux a couple of times on "Le Tour", but nothing prepared us for the arrival at the higher parts of the mountain. The view was just like that from a plane on a clear day and we both felt a bit vulnerable - it was quite scary in fact and I can't explain why - maybe because it seems to be a sheer drop over every edge.  And then the moonscape where very little but moss and a few little pine trees grow.  The southern side of the pine trees were covered in ice making them look like tinsel covered xmas trees.  And at the top, the sky was bright blue, the sun was shining (though it was cold), there was no wind  and we were above white clouds. What an absolutely amazing place.  I have a newfound respect for the cyclists who climb it after having ridden all morning from somewhere near Lyon - with or without performance enhancing substances - it is some achievement!


And then back down the mountain to visit Carpentras which is just down the road from our cottage, to walk around the old centre of town that includes France's oldest synagogue - originally built in 1367 - and then home to left-overs for dinner.  And that scary drive up the mountain?  Wouldn't have missed it for the world!